The Search For Mana

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos nodded, though Vosur wouldn't have seen it, "Yes. I can throw another flare back over behind us like the one from yesterday. It should be enough to get their attention." Lightning surged from Lazaryos' shoulder to his fist and he threw a tiny ball over behind him. The little ball soared all the way back behind some of the few that had taken their attention to the group, and it ignited. The brightness was enough to take the attention of bombardiers from all sides.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

When Ember heard what Dante said, she visualized herself turning around and grabbing him by the throat and then tossing him to the ground. She smirked at the image and instead of going through with it and risking getting hit with an attack, she just tossed a fireball back at Dante without giving it a second thought. She would have loved for it to hit him but she figured he'd just evade it. She kept moving with the group when they zigzagged to avoid bombardments and watched Lazaryos throw the little ball back but looked forward again before it ignited with blinding light.

[Srgntcuddles]

Dante saw the fireball get tossed at him, rolling under it to dodge. He came out of the roll into a run not losing much ground. He didn't notice it but it caught his tail, lighting a small flame. Though at the speed they were running it blew itself out. He looked behind him to see a man hit by the fireball that was coming up behind him and turned back ahead of him. "Nice shot! If I didn't know better I'd think you cared about me a little!" He was oblivious to the fact it was directed at him.

[Vosur Aekira]

Vosur caught sight of flash, raising his tinted-glasses back up on his nose quickly. He continued to lead them towards the bridge, knocking away a few guards that were placed there with a surprise punch to each of them, though due to them wearing helmets, he was shaking his hand after the rush-attack. "Sonova... palm-strikes when wearing helmets, not closed-fist." he muttered to himself, stopping at the edge of the bridge to make sure that the rest of the group made it there and that there were no ambushes from behind at the bridge. He was breathing heavily from all of the moving around, trying to calm himself down as they made it to a somewhat-safe area. "Keep your guard up, they may have archers."

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos panted as he let his legs collapse under him and sat against the bridge, "No, they won't shoot here, even IF there are archers aimed at us. None of them are going to risk damaging the bridge in any way. Knowing the Tri'Malis, anyone who shoots an arrow or spell towards the bridge, miss or hit, is executed on the spot. We're safe from combat as long as we stay on the bridge. Being near it protects us from archers and casters. Now let me catch my breath." Little statics of lightning sparked from time to time from his eyes and his one outstretched hand, ready to attack anyone who decided to go after them.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Ember looked back when Dante said 'nice shot' to check and see if he had been mocking her or if she had actually hit something, seeing that she had got someone coming up behind him. "Damn it." She muttered under breath to herself. Her legs wanted her to sit down when they got to the bridge but she had some other business to attend to first. Once they were safe at the bridge, she turned on Dante, getting right up to him so she was only a foot away before she spoke. She expected Vosur to worry that she was going to attack the guy, but that wasn't her plan even though it sounded better to her. "That fireball was meant for YOU." She snapped, pushing a finger against his chest when she said 'you' since she didn't know he wouldn't be able to feel it. "I despise your pure, putrid, holier-than-thou, stinkin' guts! If I knew throwing it would save you from a surprise attack, I wouldn't have done it." After she was done, she swiftly turned on her heel and walked away from him before picking a spot on the bridge to sit and rest her legs.

[Chrono Blackwyng]

Chrono felt the sudden exhaustion hit him as he slowed to a stop and didn't get back to running pace. He grabbed onto a rail and looked over the area it spanned over. "Well, how much should we wait until we go dragon-hunting?" Chrono asked this only after Ember had a few moments to cool off. He was getting around to being thankful for his lack of sweating and general body odor. I'd hate to have sweat glands if it all just gathers in the leggings and greaves...

[Srgntcuddles]

Dante breathed heavily after stopping with the others. That's when Ember yelled at him. When she finished he smirked a bit. After she poked him, turned and walked off he followed after her. When she sat down he crouched down in front of her, looking at her curiously. "Why?" he asked simply. "What about me do you despise?" he continued. After that he looked around, seeing no one within earshot. "...Do you need a hug?" he said softly. He was curious as to why she didn't like him, but he added in a silly question to try and throw it off, being his casual self.

[Vosur Aekira]

Vosur had put away the cards right after Lazaryos mentioned that no one would dare cause harm to the bridge without retribution, pulling out some of the smoked meat and eating on it as his breathing calmed down. Hearing Ember yell out all of a sudden, he grabbed Dante by the collar to pull him away from a near-possible barbecuing. "Are you out of your mind, Padre? Unless you trust her holding your life in her hands, I would not recommend getting too close. She just got out of a battle and her blood may still be racing, which means she could still be in battle-ready mindset." he spoke, nearly coughing what he ate due to this catching him by surprise. After he managed to pull Dante just enough away to put himself between Ember and Dante, he breathed-out exhaustedly, looking back to Lazaryos and to Chrono as he took another bite of the smoked meat.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos' breathing finally slowed back down, though it was still a bit heavy. "We won't have too much more time, so make the most of it. I'd give maybe another hour or two before major parties make it here. Our best chance is to head out very soon. As much as I hate dragons, I hate fighting hordes a little bit more." He turned his head and looked down through the bridge. At the other ledges at the end, he could see the dragons yawn, and the glimmer of Chrono's sword off the side of one of its scales. "The last fight with that dragon cost the lives of over 100 travelers, and we didn't even nick it. Now we have to fight two of them. This is going to be hell."

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Ember stopped herself from lunging at Dante and attacking him which was her first instinct to do. She angled her eyes up and around Vosur, staring at Dante through her bangs. "Because you are the extreme opposite of that psycho that we had with us before instead of being an average, sane being. Because you won't fight for your life. Because you are too worried about their lives to remember that your life should come first." She said, gesturing sideways when she said 'their' with her head toward the battlefield and the people fighting there. "Because you're just...odd...to me. You don't seem...right, at all." Her voice sounded devoid of emotion. She didn't feel bad about anything that she was saying. Her eyes narrowed. "And if you touch me, you'll be the next piece of smoked meat I'll be eating." She concluded as she reached into her bag, pulled out a piece of the meat she had stuffed in it, and viciously tore a chunk off as the fire in her eyes blazed ferociously. She listened to the talk about fighting the dragons which made her think back to their first fight with one of them, particularly the part when Chrono had told her using fire on it was useless which was the part where she decided to sit out and see just how useless she could be. She expected just as much from their next fight but knew if she sat out then they likelihood of them getting by the dragons would be even lower.

[Chrono Blackwyng]

Chrono didn't bat an eye as he looked at his sword and then at Lazaryos and Ember. "Lightning mage, do the Guardian dragons breathe fire more than they bite or swipe?" He remembered what he had said to Ember during the first fight, and had only speculated it after they reached the bridge. It wasn't until just a few seconds ago that he actually felt like what he said back then was probably something he should have kept to himself.

[Srgntcuddles]

Dante leaned to the side, looking around Vosur so he could see Ember. "What psycho? And what do you mean I'm not sane? I'm not weird. You're just not as normal as me." After saying that, he leaned back behind Vosur. He then looked at the dragons ahead, pondering how he would fight them. "I am not going to be very affective against these things. I'm not familiar with the anatomy of dragons. Not to mention I don't think I'd be able to attack it's pressure points even if they had any...This is going to be interesting."

[Vosur Aekira]

He finished the food he had bit into before he tried speaking up again.  "Before you joined up with us in this quest, even before I joined up as well, there was a necromancer. He would take the lives of his enemies intentionally and use their bodies to his own advantage as minions." Vosur spoke behind himself to Dante, still trying to separate Dante from Ember. "He broke this apparent alliance between himself and this group after I had joined, deciding to try to kill everyone. He had the means to do so, a Cursed Weapon was his primary means of fighting until he was able to raise minions to do his bidding." As he was trying to make sure Dante didn't get himself into trouble, he was also trying to listen-in on Lazaryos's and Chrono's conversation since the information was important to himself as well. "Now before you get your buns heavily toasted by our resident fire-mage, realize this: I'm only trying to save your hide because I have a debt to repay. You keep up in trying to get yourself killed from her and I'll let you go in a blaze."

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos gave a look to Chrono and shrugged, "Hell if I know. I only know what was in the ancient manuscripts and scrolls that I've been siphoning through my whole life. All that I know is that there are two treasure trove dragons that guard the entrance of the mountain. Inside, is a maze of which no one person can ever navigate through alone. In the past, teams always go in and retrieve the Mana, but only one ever emerges. That's all I know when it comes to this point in the venture. Even the dragon showing up back at the Arena has never happened before."